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Lucrative domestic mkt, financial arbitrage attracting UK colleges to India
UK-based universities are looking to tap into India's higher education market by setting up foreign campuses here, offering low-cost foreign degrees within India at a time of rising student visa uncertainties in the US.
Some are also opening liaison offices in India, aiming to increase academic collaborations with Indian universities through student and faculty exchange programmes.
As of now, at least six major UK universities have announced plans to set up campuses or liaison offices in India.
While the Universities of Coventry, Southampton, Liverpool, York, and Aberdeen have received letters of intent from the education ministry to set up campuses, Imperial College London has already inaugurated its liaison office in Bengaluru.
Southampton has announced the start of its campus in Gurugram by August this year, followed by Liverpool's Bengaluru campus in the next academic year. Similarly, Coventry is expected to open its campus in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City next year.
The development follows the University Grants Commission's (UGC's) 2023 notification of rules facilitating the entry of foreign higher educational institutions into India, as part of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 reforms.
According to these regulations, foreign institutions seeking to establish campuses in India must rank within the top 500 globally in either overall or subject-wise rankings and demonstrate outstanding expertise in their fields, subject to UGC approval.
Aman Singh, cofounder at education-focused financial technology platform GradRight, said that these universities are seeing an opportunity in India, with increasing demand for quality education from Indian students and parents, and the limitations of the domestic higher education sector in fulfilling that need.
According to the All India Survey on Higher Education 2021–22, India has over 40 million students enrolled in higher education, including around 1.5 million science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) graduates per year.
Experts add that another key reason could be that, much like in the US, domestic enrolments in UK universities appear to be stagnating or even decreasing in some cases.
'The cost structures of a lot of universities are high and need additional lines of revenue before they start facing financial strain. It is imperative that they find new sources of revenue outside the UK,' Singh said.
He noted that existing laws in the sector and strengthened agreements between the UK and India do not restrict the repatriation of earnings back to the UK by such universities, which helps strengthen their overall financial position.
'With the cost of living being low in India, a large cohort will be attracted to get a foreign degree at a low cost, which will impact their employability in the long run,' another expert added.
The number of Indian students going abroad has been increasing, with roughly 180,000 students choosing to study in the UK annually. Average programme costs range from £20,000 to £35,000 (₹25 lakh to ₹40 lakh), depending on the course and university.
Professor Hugh Brady, president of Imperial College London, said the hub's focus is on strengthening and co-creating new research and innovation partnerships between Imperial and leading universities and institutes in India.
Imperial does not plan to open a branch campus under the NEP 2020 provisions but aims to build cross-sector science and technology partnerships.
Experts also suggest these universities will be looking at the startup community and friendly government regulations to foster academic and industry collaborations in India.
Saurabh Arora, founder and chief executive officer at foreign education consultancy University Living, added that many of these collaborations create new pathways where students can begin their degrees in India and complete them in the UK, gaining valuable global exposure in the process.
However, concerns remain about whether they will maintain a high standard of delivery and push domestic institutions to improve their quality of education to remain competitive.
Singh said that he foresees more universities setting up bases in India, and there is hope they will maintain a high standard of education and not profiteer at the expense of Indian students and families.
'Another worry we have is whether their quality and fee structure, as appropriate as that might be, may motivate other domestic players to increase their fees, which in turn may start increasing the education loan burden of Indian students,' he added.
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